Friday, July 22, 2011

Nikki McClure took a rare East Coast trip recently to visit New York's local Farmer's Markets. This was the first time I was meeting Nikki. We have worked on three books together ( All in A Day, Mama Is It Summer Yet?, and To Market, To Market) and spent hours on the phone coming over all sorts of things. So I was excited to finally meet her and thank her for the honey she sent me while working on To Market, To Market to help with my cold. It was the day before Labor Day weekend and I needed to release the final files to the printer for proofs. Only I had a horrible cold, which I later found out was strep throat. No biggie. A hero you say for coming into the office sick . . . I think not. The real hero was Nikki's Honey which saved my throat from certain destruction. Honey which I am sure she picked up at her local farmers market. It was amazing!

Prospect Parks Farmer's Market

Susan Van Metre's very well behaved dog Mugs stopped by and had a drink of water

"One of my favorite things about life in New York City is the bounty of local farmer’s markets. Whether it’s the massive Greenmarket in Union Square or a neighborhood farmstand, buying local and fresh is the motto these days and the farmer’s markets that have popped up across the country serve as evidence." —Alison Gervais, senior production manager at ABRAMS

Known for art that celebrates the virtues of community, hard work, and living gently on the planet, Nikki McClure here explores a topic close to her heart: the farmers market. Alternating between story and fact, this lovingly crafted picture book follows a mother and son to the weekly market. As they check off items on their shopping list, the reader learns how each particular food was grown or produced, from its earliest stages to how it ended up at the market. To Market, to Market is a timely book that shines awareness on the skill that goes into making good food.

Nikki McClure is a self-taught artist who has been making paper-cuts since 1996. She is the author and illustrator of Collect Raindrops and Mama, Is It Summer Yet? and the illustrator of All in a Day, by Cynthia Rylant, which won the Pacific Northwest Bookseller's award. She visits her farmers market in Olympia, Washington, every week. Visit her online at www.nikkimcclure.com.

Wednesday, July 06, 2011

Usually I don't attend the ALA conference but this year I made and exception. How could I pass up seeing Margi Preus accept her Newbery Honor for Heart of a Samurai and on top of that it was in New Orleans which I had never been too. I obviously I could not.

Author Jonathan Auxier can't believe he is signing his first galley of Peter Nimble.

Tom Angleberger made his own Darth Paper shirt!

Erica Perl

John Hendrix

Auxier speaks over a fine meal to a room of eager Librarians

Margi Preus

Drinks at the Napoleon House in the French Quarter are a must for anybody visiting New Orleans for the first time. "Few places capture the essence of New Orleans like the Napoleon House: A 200 year old landmark that's as casual and unique as its French Quarter surroundings." Sitting there enjoying my Pimm's cup after a long day at the ABRAMS booth you could imagine drinking side by side with Indiana Jones who was just about too get in to a fight over an ancient relic which would lead to the bar being burnt to a crisp